Cruise towards Christmas: Summer is the ideal time to book your winter voyage

The school summer holidays may only just have begun but if you are a cruise fan, now is the time to start thinking about Christmas.

The cruise companies are already tempting passengers with a range of special deals – whether you prefer a blast of December sunshine in the Caribbean or have time for a longer voyage.

The family-focused Ventura sails from Barbados for 14 nights on December 21. Father Christmas will abseil down the funnel on December 25. The fare is from £2,779 per person, including flights from Birmingham, Manchester or Gatwick, with P&O (0843 3740111, www.pocruises.co.uk).

Set sail: There are plenty of great cruise deals for this winter

If you love theme parks, start your holiday with three nights at a hotel in Orlando, Florida, before joining Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas for an eight-night cruise from Fort Lauderdale. Departure is on December 21 and the fly-stay-cruise package costs from £1,929pp with Virgin Holidays (0844 5734398, www.virginholidayscruises.co.uk).

You could also be sea-kayaking and snorkelling from a beach in Roatan, Honduras, on Christmas Day, or viewing the reef in a semi-submarine. Those are just two of 55 free excursions available on a ten-night cruise aboard Seven Seas Navigator (02380 682280, www.rssc.com), sailing from Miami on December 18. The ship sails to Key West and the Caribbean coasts of Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala and Belize. The all-inclusive price, from £3,809pp, covers flights and open bars.

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Further afield, an adults-only Mysteries Of The Indian Ocean cruise with Swan Hellenic (0844 8220679, www.swanhellenic.com), sailing from Sri Lanka to Singapore, will spend Christmas Day at sea between the Andaman Islands and Rangoon. The 16-night cruise, leaving on December 19, costs from £2,010pp including flights and excursions.

Take the plunge: You could be snorkelling in the Caribbean during the festive break

Why not spend Christmas heading round Cape Horn from the Atlantic to the Pacific? A 17-night cruise on Oceania's Marina sails from Rio de Janeiro on December 10, heading down the coast of Argentina and up the coast of Chile with Christmas Day at sea. The cost is from £2,792pp including flights (0845 5051920, www.oceaniacruises.com).

You can even get in on the act if you like a walk at Christmas, with a no-fly, two-week Ramblers 'cruise and walk' holiday aboard Fred Olsen's Balmoral. It leaves on a round trip to the Canary Islands from Southampton on December 22. After three days at sea with a traditional Christmas on board, your first guided walk is on Madeira and there are hikes on La Palma, Tenerife and Gran Canaria, and in Lisbon and Oporto. The cost is from £1,849pp (01707 386767, www.cruiseandwalk.co.uk).

For a bit more glitz, head to the Med on Divina, MSC's newest ship, launched this year. The 11-night cruise, a round trip from Genoa, calls at Barcelona, Casablanca, Madeira and Tenerife. On Christmas morning you'll wake up in Malaga. The cost is from £849pp including flights (0844 561 1955, www.msccruises.co.uk).

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The best Christmas cruises available: Summer is the ideal time to book your winter voyage